Catholic View of the Bible

[buffalo]

jbsmith:

Is Pope Benedict XVI taking steps to rid the Church of these heresies? The leadership at the parish I used to attend don’t like him. I’ve heard the priest, nun, and choir director make statements to the effect that he’s too conservative. The priest and choir director were lamenting the fact that thanks to Benedict XVI, “nothing is going to change.”

Thank you for the Catechism recommendation. I’ve been wondering which edition to buy. I’ll look up the edition with the dark cover.

Yes, he recently warned against recent biblical scholarship.

 

[mikew262]

jbsmith:

My RCIA teacher and the priest at the local parish both told me that there are large parts of the Old and New Testaments that are either partially true or total fiction. I’ve tried doing some online research to see if this is the Church’s official position, but I can’t find anything definite. I’ve become quite confused actually. Can anyone give me some insight into the Church’s official position regarding this, or recommend some resources for me to read/study? Thanks for any help you can give.

Our parish priest told my teenage daughter about 7 yrs ago that the Bible was just a series of stories.

 

[jbsmith]

That is a good question. But the more I myself have delved into it, the more I realize that one’s hands are tied. Many people are at fault, and it will take many people repenting for it to be fixed.

There is a parable regarding this:

Matthew 13:24 Another parable he proposed to them, saying: The kingdom of heaven is likened to a man that sowed good seeds in his field. 25 But while men were asleep, his enemy came and oversowed cockle among the wheat and went his way. 26 And when the blade was sprung up, and had brought forth fruit, then appeared also the cockle. 27 And the servants of the goodman of the house coming said to him: Sir, didst thou not sow good seed in thy field? whence then hath it cockle? 28 And he said to them: An enemy hath done this. And the servants said to him: Wilt thou that we go and gather it up? 29 And he said: No, lest perhaps gathering up the cockle, you root up the wheat also together with it. 30 Suffer both to grow until the harvest, and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers: Gather up first the cockle, and bind it into bundles to burn, but the wheat gather ye into my barn.

Apparently it took a long time for the Church to get this way. I imagine there are so many people responsible that it’s nearly impossible to count them.

Something has to be done about that by someone who knows what to do. You are too new to do more than express your concern to others, as you have done here. Perhaps you can find someone trustworthy in the other parishes who can report the matter to the Bishop

That’s a good point. If the Church is going to be turned around, I guess it’s going to happen one parish at a time, right? I’ll look into it.

This is another good question, and I encourage you to continue to search for the answer, because it takes some experience to realize why things are the way they are.

When you are steering a large ship through the water, you have to take into account the inertia of the ship and the delay for propagating orders. And when you are in a large company, you can’t fire someone without having documented remedial efforts and the like. And you have to remember that long-term solutions are more important than temporary quick-fixes.

There are so many variables, and so many people and issues, that it can’t be done quickly. There are ecclesiastical courts, and generally speaking, any action can be appealed unless judged by the Pope himself. Recently there was a priest who was officially declared a heretic here in the U.S. It was a very rare declaration, and you can read about it here: SoCal clergyman convicted of heresy by Roman Catholic diocese. He didn’t care, and said it was “medieval”. So again, it is going to take some grit to get rid of these evils that even when blatantly acting against the Church have the gall to assert themselves as acceptable.

Welcome to boot camp. Hurry up and get your gear ready, because we need you. Learn the true faith, stay loyal to the Pope and official Church teachings, bear with the shortcomings of others, overcome your own faults, strive for holiness, live in Jesus through the Sacraments and Scripture, and in general prepare yourself for marching orders from on high in a spirit of service to God and neighbor. This is the Church Militant

hurst

That was an interesting article, but the excommunication seemed redundant at this point. The priest had already left the Church and hadn’t considered himself to be Roman Catholic since 1999. He had already ceased to be a Roman Catholic priest already, right? It seems the Church just responded to what he himself had already done. I’d be curious to know why the Church was so slow to excommunicate him.

I’ve seen the term “church militant” used on this forum numerous times. Now I think I understand why.

 

[jbsmith]

trogiah:

Perhaps the story of the rich young man (who was Jewish based on the context) may offer some insight. When he came up to Jesus and asked Him what he should do to inherit God’s kingdom, Jesus began by saying (more or less) “follow the Commandments and you will have life.” Then when the young man asked for something more Jesus told him “Sell all you have and follow me” The young man was unable to comply.

So this young man seems to have a claim on a measure of life, because of his committment to following the Commandments, but he was unable to obtain the fullness of life because he couldn’t let go of his possessions as an act of faith. The story leads me to accept that any Jewish person with a firm committment to keeping the commandments could be considered “saved” at least from eternal damnation. However, among the “saved” there are levels of attainment and only those who give themselves completely to Jesus attain the fullness of life.

I think I would say again about your instructors. They are not wrong to say “Jews who keep the Commandments are saved” but the emphasis of their teachings should be about how any and all of us can achieve the fullness of life.

peace

Jim

Thank you for the insights.

 

[jbsmith]

itsjustdave1988:

Where does the “Church say so?” Some members of the Church have said so, but the magisterium says something quite different.

Read Dominus Iesus . It is what the “Church says.” I can also gather some quotes for you later today from works by their favorite theologian, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger.

Thank you. I didn’t read anything in there that indicated Jews were saved without accepting Jesus as their Savior. Maybe I should mail a copy of this to the deacon who teaches RCIA.

 

[buffalo]

jbsmith:

Thank you. I didn’t read anything in there that indicated Jews were saved without accepting Jesus as their Savior. Maybe I should mail a copy of this to the deacon who teaches RCIA.

It has to do with God making His Covenant with them and not breaking it. The Church is not sure how this happens.

 

[jbsmith]

buffalo:

It has to do with God making His Covenant with them and not breaking it. The Church is not sure how this happens.

Now that makes sense. More sense than what the RCIA teacher said in class. Thanks.

 

[jbsmith]

buffalo:

Maybe the students need to start educating the teachers.

I agree. The topic of the first class session could be:

1. The Bible is not fiction, and
2. It’s not okay to perform gay weddings in church. (The priest did this a couple of years ago. No one got upset about it.)

 

[jbsmith]

buffalo:

Yes, he recently warned against recent biblical scholarship.

I’m glad he did. I hope a more reliable English language study Bible is in the works. I don’t trust my NAB Study BIble anymore.

 

[buffalo]

Here is some info that may help:

Response to Cardinal Avery Dulles on the Covenant of the Jews

 

[jbsmith]

mikew262:

Our parish priest told my teenage daughter about 7 yrs ago that the Bible was just a series of stories.

That’s sad. It’s also scary that there are priests, deacons, and bishops out there that are leading innocent people astray. They will be responsible for the souls of these people.

 

[jbsmith]

buffalo:

Here is some info that may help:

Response to Cardinal Avery Dulles on the Covenant of the Jews

Thanks. Gotta go right now, but I’ll read it later.

 

[hurst]

jbsmith:

That was an interesting article, but the excommunication seemed redundant at this point. The priest had already left the Church and hadn’t considered himself to be Roman Catholic since 1999. He had already ceased to be a Roman Catholic priest already, right?

He remained a priest. In fact, once a person is ordained a priest, he is a priest forever because he has an indelible mark on his soul to that effect. But the Church can take away his right to practice the ministry.

jbsmith:

It seems the Church just responded to what he himself had already done.

Yes, they said he was already automatically excommunicated, but were making it formal to protect others from being misled.

jbsmith:

I’d be curious to know why the Church was so slow to excommunicate him.

I think it is because it is a rare practice anymore, and a sensitive issue. But that is a good question. If swifter and more deliberate action would be taken, then people would have a clearer idea of what is expected and what is right or wrong.

Then again, maybe this is all being allowed by God in order to reveal those who really don’t want to serve Him.

hurst

 

[jbsmith]

hurst:

He remained a priest. In fact, once a person is ordained a priest, he is a priest forever because he has an indelible mark on his soul to that effect. But the Church can take away his right to practice the ministry.

Yes, they said he was already automatically excommunicated, but were making it formal to protect others from being misled.

I think it is because it is a rare practice anymore, and a sensitive issue. But that is a good question. If swifter and more deliberate action would be taken, then people would have a clearer idea of what is expected and what is right or wrong.

Then again, maybe this is all being allowed by God in order to reveal those who really don’t want to serve Him.

hurst

Thank you, you’ve helped me understand this issue a little better. As for the Bible issue, I’ve decided not to read my NAB Study BIble after finding oput how heretical the study notes are. (I’ve done some Internet research that has confirmed this.) So I was thinking maybe I should buy an NAB Bible witho0ut any study notes and then look around for some good Bible study materials that are faithful to what the Church teaches. I don’t know where to start, though. Any suggestions?